Machine for forming tubular fabrics



H. D. TRACY.

MACHINE FOR FORMING TUBULAR FABRICS.

APPLICATION FILED sEP 27, 1919.

Patented May 18, 1920.

3 SIHEEISSHEET 1.

'IIVVENTUR, HIKE Ya QY,

q i I ATTORNEY.

H. D. TRACY.

MACHINE FOR FORMING TUBULAR FABRICS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.Z7| I919.

Patented May 18, 1920.

3 SHEE'IS-SHEET 2.

WITNESS H. D, TRACY MACHlNE FOR FORMING TUBULAR FABRICS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-27, I919.

Patented May 18, 1920.

/' i l i WITNESS ,4 TTOHNE Y.

UN ITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. 1

HOMER D. TRACY, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO BARBOUR SPINNING COMPANY, 015"v PAT'ERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

MACHINE FOR FORMING TIJ'BULAR FABRICS.

Patented May 18, 1920.

Application filed September 27, 1919. Serial No. 326,830. I

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HOMER D. TRACY, a citizen of the United States, residin at Paterson, in the county of Passaic and tate 5 of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Forming Tubular Fabrics, of which the following is a specification. r A

It is very desirable in the forming of tubular material composed of intertwined strands, as the product of the braiding or circular weaving machine, to obtain uniformity of tension in the finished" product, and it is the principal object of this invention to provide a machine whose product will be characterized by this quality and which will be capable of turning out a greater quantity of productthan ordinary machines of its class. To these ends,,and having reference to the improved machine in its preferred form herein set forth, the

' supplies for one set of strands are made to travel, spaced from eachother, in a cir cular (non-sinuous) course, being arranged so that the axes of the wound packages of p yarn thereof all converge to the focal or intertwining point, and the supplies of the other set of strands are arranged, stationary, beneath the first-named supplies, the latter strands being moved each inward and outward across the circular pathof saidfirstnamed supplies and so as to alternately pass back and forth through the successive spaces between them, the instrumentalities for moving said latter strands being guided in arcshaped paths which have the said focal or intertwining point as their center and hav ing their guiding portions arranged also to converge to said point. When theprodnot is to take the form of conventional braid, and since in the machine as so far outlined the strands which come from the lower or stationary supplies wouldotherwise not be spirally disposed but extend longitudinally of the finished product, I provide for,

turning the take-up mechanism around the axis of forming such product to give said strands the desired pitch.

In the drawings,

Figure 1. is. a side elevation of the im proved machine, partly in section; Fig. 2 is a plan, the superstructure being removed and certain parts appearing in secelevation ofthe take-up shaped portions 6 of the circular race-forming structure in which the upper set of yarn supplies travel, the ends of said'portions 0 being spaced so that the race is radially slotted (between the membersc d of each .pair of uprights) as at f,Fig. 2. The upright d in each pair has a curved andslotted guide d whose purpose will hereinafter appear. The racehas an inverted T-shaped endless slot 9, and in this slot travel the body parts (similarly shaped) of the upper set of yarn carriers it, having peripheral gear teeth It and oneach of which are arranged a spindle i for the yarn package j and a thread-guiding arm is pivoted to said I body part of the carrier so that it may be moved away from the spindle to allow clearance in fitting on or removing the yarn from the package,the several spindles converging and the guides 70 of said guiding arms (which also have suitable yarn tension means It) being adapted to be brought into convergence all to substantially the same point.

The lower yarn supplies, packages Z, are

stationary, being supported in any way.

rights Li and has aplate n (Fig. 2) to retain it in the slot, 0 being a tubular thread guide projecting upwardly from the slide n and p a suitable tension device. "Each slot point, to wit, the yarn focal or intertwining four upper and four lower yarn sup-' plies, and-hence four shifters in the presentv instance) consists of a slide at which pro? jects through the slotd' of one of the up- The yarn from each is carried up through d" is concentric with the focal or intertwining point, and the guide 0 is radial with respect to the slot, so that all the guides converge toward said point in any position of the slides.

The upper supplies are equally spaced from each other and in this relation travel in the race 6, and at regular intervals (as on each upper supply having passed a slot 7) the yarn of the corresponding lower supply is shifted through said slot one way or the other, as the shifter is .reciprocated.

The travel of the upper supplies in their race and the shifting of the yarn from the lower supplies back and forth by reciprocating the shifters is accomplished thus:

In the bed-plate a is journaled a vertical shaft 9 in alinement with the yarn focal point, the upper end of the shaft carrying a cam a" formed with a bevel gear 8 and the lower end of the shaft carrying a gear t, the rotary structure 9, a", 6'. thus formed being adapted to be driven from the drive shaft it havin a bevel pinion v meshing with the bevel pinion s. Journaled in the bed plate a and the portions 0 of the race are eight vertical shafts Q0 each having a pin ion 00 at its lower end in mesh with the gear 6 and a pinion y at itsupper end meshing with the gear teeth h of the yarn carriers h,

the spacing of the pinions 3/ being .such as to insure each yarn carrier as it is about to clear one pinion being operatively engaged by the next in the direction of rotation. A spider .2 having its hub .2 fitted over the upper end of the shaft q and the ends 2" of its arms forked and each receiving and secured to a pair of uprights 0 (Z is arranged over the cam r, and each of its arms has a longitudinal slot 2 cross-section (Fig. 1). radial Each slot forms a guide for a slide 2 which is pivotally connected with the slide a of the corresponding shifter by a link 3. Each slide 2 has a projection, as a roller 4, engaged in he star-shaped slot 5 in the cam 1", which is dished. There are four equidistant rises and falls in the carnway 5, and it being remarked that the pinions and g are of the same diameter, it will be apparent that on rotating the structure 9, 1, t'the above'de scribed relative movements of the upper yarn supplies and the yarn from the lower supplies will be obtained.

It will be seen that with respect to both sets of yarn supplies intermittence of movement is entirely eliminated, the only elements which do move intermittently being the shifters for the yarn fromwthe lower supplies, which are parts comparatively light in weight, in consequence of which a very large part of the vibration which characterizes ordinary machines is avoided, so that the operation is attended with comparatively little noise and may proceed at which is T-shapedin much greater speed than usual, with of course increased production.

Elimination of intermittence of movement of the supplies further contributes to a superior condition, in point of uniformity, to the tension of the yarn inthe finished product, not only with respect to each yarn but in their relation to each other. And this is enhanced by arranging the spindles i of the upper supplies and the guides 71: therefor so as to converge toward the focal or intertwiningpoint, and by arranging the shifters to move in arc-shaped paths eoncentric with said point, and their guides so that they also converge toward said point. Among the advantagesv incident to moving the shifters in outwardly rising paths is the fact that in a case, like that assumed, where the yarns shifted aretalien from supplies below the shifters, the angularity produced in the yarn at one limit of its movement can axial alinement with the shaft q. The tube is gournaled 1n the hub of a rotary member 7 in turn journaled in an extension 8 of the arm 9 of a standard 1.0 upstanding from the bedplate a, and said tube has at its upper end a pinion 11 which meshes with the pinions 12'of two hauler devices also journaled in said member, on each side of the tube, and having grooved peripheries 13 to receive the finished product, whichon issuing from the tube extends one or more times around the ha-ulerdevices before extending to the spool on which it is wound (Fig. when the tube rotated the hauler devices will be rotated, thus to effect the take-up of the finished product. WVhile the tube rotates in member 7 to cause the take-up said member is rotated, when conventionally formed braid is to be the product, in the same direc tion as but at one-half the speed of the supplies'h, so as to impart a pitch to the yarns coining from the supplies Z equal to that from the supplies it, for otherwise it will be obvious that the former yarns would be worked into the product parallel with its axis, or exactly longitudinally thereof.

The rotating of member 7 and the tube (and consequently the hauled devices) in said member is effected from a pair of parallel horizontal shafts 14, 15 which are suitably journaled in standard 10' and have bevel gearing 16, 17 respectively connecting them with the lower end of the tube and said shaft andshaft is in each case 2 to v 1, so that the cam and shaft 20 rotate at the same speed, Thegearing between shafts 20 and 15 is l to 1, but the upper gearing 17 is 2 to l, wherefore member ,7 rotates at half the speed and in the same direction as the supplies 71 so that the yarn from the supplies Z is" given the necessary pitch.

The member 7 forms the base of a flier including two vertical rods 23 (either or both of which are tubular) braced at the top by a ring 24. Arfixed spindle 25,-whose axis is alined, with the axis of the bed plate, upstands from a cross-head 25, and on this spindle as an axis is arranged a false spindle consisting of the inner tubular member 26 having a disk-shaped lower head 26 seated upon the cross-head (there being preferably an interposed anti-friction bearing 27 and an outer tubular member 28 having a slip grip connection with the member 26 and a lower head 28 provided with a coupling button 29 to engage in a suitable hole in the end of the bobbin 30 on which the finished product is wound. The braid extends from one of the hauler devices up through one of the rods 23 and then to the spool, and since the flier turns and, as will appear, the member 26 of the false spindle is held from turning and the spool and member 28 turn only as the friction between 26 and 28 is overcome by the pull of the braid (at slower speed than the flier) the braid will be wound on the spool. The necessary traverse, to lay the finished product on the spool from end to end thereof is accomplished by providing cross-head 25 with a peripheral groove 31 to receive an interior'tongue 32 on a ring 33 preferably made in two parts, trunnions 34 on the ring receiving the ends of a fork'35 forming the end of one arm of a bell-crank lever 36 fulcrumed in the standard 10, said arm being telescopic as in Upon loosening the milled nuts 14: on the trunnions the bail may be raised to clear the false spindle, as on dofling, the bail in its normal position holding the false spindle from turning, so that the necessary drag is imposed on the spool in order to effect the winding of the finished product thereon.

The arrangement of the upper supplies and their delivery guides and tension means so as to converge toward the focal point of the yarns and of the, guideways (Z for the shifters so that the latter move in outwardly rising courses make it possible to attain the least possible throw of the shifters in order to effect the intertwining of the yarns without interference with the mechanism, it being noted in this connection that tapering packages are preferably utilized and that the guides 0 project well up to the bases of said packages.

The fact that the yarn controlled by thev shiftersis subject to tension means on and movable with the shiftersinstead of being placed so that the shifters move with reference to the tension means and further that the shifters and hence the tension means move in constant relation to, as to distance from, the focal point of the yarns obviously contributes very considerably to thetension being practically perfectly constant at all times. So far as I am aware this is new in machines of the kind set forth herein, as is also, in fact, the provision of sets of tension means, one for each set of yarns, arranged to travel so as to effect the intertwining and so that each tension means in either set will maintain a constant relation to, as to distance from, the focal point of the yarns.

Having thus fully described my invention, what claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A machine of the class set forth including, in combination, spaced devices, arranged around and substantially equidistantly from the axis of intertwining the yarns, for delivering one set of yarns, means to guide the other set of yarns in a circuit around said axis and in substantially conical alinement with said devices and the focal point of the yarns, and shifters engaging the first set of yarns between said devices and said focal point and each movable back and forth from one to the other of limits substantially equidistantly inward and outward of straight lines connecting said devices and the focal point, each outer limit being in a plane nearer than the corresponding inner limit to said focal point.

2. A machine of the class set forth including, in combination, spaced devices, arranged around and substantially equidistantly from the axis of intertwining the yarns, for delivering one set of yarns, means to guide the other set of yarns in a circuit around said axis and in substantially conical alinement with said devices and-the focal point of the yarns, and shifters engaging the first set of yarns between said devices and said focal point and each movable back and forth from one to the other of limits in a curve substantially concentric With said focal point and substantially equidistantly inward and outward of straight lines connecting said devices and the focal point.

3. In a machine of the class set forth, the combination of a fixed structure having a circuitous carrier guideway and also other guideways for yarn shifters arranged at intervals and crosswise of the first guideway, spaced carriers for one set of yarns movable along the first guideway, shifters for the other set of yarns movable back and forth along the other guideways, andacross the first guideway, a rotary shifter actuating cam journaled concentric with the axis of interwining the yarns, said shifter guideways being arranged relatively outward of the cam whereby the other set of yarns may be taken from supplies beyond the cam relatively to the focal point of the yarns, and transmission gearing connecting the cam and the carriers.

4. A machine of the class described including, in combination, a circuitous race arranged around the axis of intertwining the yarns, spaced uprights supporting said race at intervals and having guideways extending across the race, spaced means movable along the race for conveying around one'set of yarns, and shifters for the other set of yarns movable in the guideways.

5. A machine of the class set forth including, in combination, a frame having means to guide one set of yarns in a circuit around the axis of intertwining the yarns, recipr0-' 

